By WARREN ANDERSON*
in Washington D.C
According to Hollywood’s chattering class of self-appointed political geniuses, specifically Meryl Streep and Rosie O’Donnell, as well as a true American Hero of the Civil Rights Movement, Representative John Lewis (D-Ga.), the world will be ending at Noon, January 20th when Donald Trump becomes the 45th President of the United States at the 58th Inauguration of a United States President. While Streep is highly critical of President-elect Trump’s words and alleged deeds, Lewis has stated that he questions Trump’s legitimacy as the newly elected president due to alleged Russian/Putin attempts to influence the U.S’s election and democratic process. Rosie O’Donnell has left all sanity behind and shown her complete ignorance and contempt of the U.S. Constitution by calling for Martial Law to be declared (by whom? How? Supported by what force?) to prevent Trump from becoming president.
At present, close to 40 U.S. Members of Congress—all Members of the House of Representatives and all Democrats—have declared they would boycott the Inauguration of Trump, due to his words, his alleged actions, and the policies he seems to be proposing. That may seem like a lot, but they are really not very significant to Trump or his plans; they are all from safe, secure Democrat districts that would vote for a dead dog before a live Republican human if the dog had Democrat next to its name on the ballot; Republicans have a large and solid majority of votes in the House of Representatives to help pass his plans, and; to date, no Democrat Senator has decided to boycott the Inauguration.
It is important that those outside the United States, as well as U.S. citizens, understand what Inauguration Day is and what it means. Yes, to a small extent, for the election day victors, it is a celebration of that victory. But it is not primarily a celebration of the person elected president. It is a celebration of the fact that the most powerful person in the world—in this case one well-loved and popular—is willingly and peacefully giving up his position to someone less popular, as prescribed by a Constitution written over 200 years ago, without a tank in the streets or the threat of any coup to prevent the transition. It will be the peaceful, thoughtful, and unthreatened handing of unbelievable power from the President to a private citizen who then becomes President while the formerly powerful becomes just another U.S. citizen.
President Donald Trump? President Donald Trump! Maybe it is the end of the world! Who would have believed it possible when, on June 16th of 2015 he announced his candidacy for president? Certainly, not the political experts and media pundits! Certainly not sixteen other Republican candidates for president! And most certainly, neither Hillary or Bill Clinton! World leaders were also dismissive and shocked at Trump’s candidacy, the U.S. election season and the world shattering results; Donald Trump, elected 45th President of the United States of America!
What should the world make of what will take place at noon, January 20th, 2017? NATO members and allies, the EU block, Britain, Germany, Mexico, Russia, China, and Taiwan, as well as the nations of the Middle East, especially Iran, Israel, and Saudi Arabia all will be greatly impacted by the impending Trump tsunami headed their way.
The Trump tsunami is coming, if his words are to be believed: NATO nations will need to increase their contributions to the expected 2% of GDP (Albania spends 1.16%, according to NATO); Trump supported Brexit and has indicated he will make better trade deals with Britain; Germany will need to buy more U.S. made cars; Mexico—one way or another—will be paying for a wall that will put a halt to the on-going invasion of America through her southern border of about 500million per year; a deal may be made with Russia/Putin to ease sanctions in return for a nuclear weapons reduction treaty; there may be a rethink of the U.S’s “One China” policy and a more open support of democratic Taiwan versus authoritarian, communist China, and; a complete reversal of Obama’s look at the Middle East with Israel back in favor, the Iran deal in question and the forthright, determined elimination of ISIS and radical Islam. The United States of America will once again take its place as the leader of the free world, with its interest’s primary. No more apologies for being who it is and its place in the world. Work with us and there will be harmony and good for all; try to cheat us, hurt us, or take advantage of U.S’s good nature and you will incur the wrath of Trump.
The United States is divided. I see it here in Washington D.C., compared to where I live now on the border of Minnesota, North Dakota, and Canada. I hear it in my conversations with my sister living in New York city. The U.S. is divided between those living on the East and West coasts versus those of us in the middle—or “fly-over” part—of the U.S. It is the inner cities—which often have corrupt, incompetent, and ineffective one party (Democrat run) governments—that depend on Federal government hand-outs for many of their citizens to survive. There are no good paying, long term, proper jobs available. Their public schools are, for the most part, failures. There is no hope. Instead, there are demands for more benefits, more government programs, all to be paid by someone else; someone in the “fly-over areas.”
January 20th will not be the end of the world; it will be the beginning of a new, stronger, prouder America. If Trump and the Republican House and Senate can work together—with some help from more moderate Democrat Senators—I believe that the currently divided America will come together. A new and improved health care plan, a fight to keep and increase quality, well-paying jobs in currently blighted areas around America, a fair and reasonable immigration policy, and a strong and determined America internationally can be the real Trump tsunami.
* Warren Anderson is a Tirana Times op-ed contributor, covering the inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington.
